The Sea
by lildrummerboi
Summary: Perry Johnson is not who he claims to be, that much is obvious. He's not a fairytale, myth, or legend of any sort. So if he's none of these, then what is he?
1. Once Upon a Midnight Dreary

The soft rumbling growl of the sleek matte black car sent the occasional jolt through his body, starting at his calves and slowly crawling their way up to the backs of his knees. The vibrations were serving to keep him awake on the long drive. With only the occasional street lamp or signpost for company Percy was left with naught but his own thoughts to occupy him. He wouldn't let himself hope, not now; he couldn't, not when he was potentially so close. If he dared hope, if he even so much as thought, for one joyous, gleeful moment, that there was a chance this could be what he had been searching for, then he knew that the fate, the vindictive bitches they were, would find some way to take this from him too. So instead he focused on his story, and his plan. He knew the signs of supernatural elements at work, and all he needed was the faintest incline that something magical was or had occurred.

In the trunk of the restored metal monster, lay an assortment of badges, tags, and other assorted federal looking documents. He would play an old favorite of his, one he used at any opportunity, and given the access straight to the Atlantic, via the towns harbor, a marine biologist surveying the local salmon population, would prove inconspicuous enough as to not draw too much attention. At least…that had been the case in the past anyways. The rumbling in his knees was soon replaced with a rumble in his stomach, how long had it been since he last ate? He couldn't remember, everything about the last twenty-four hours was a blur of maps and road signs, sighing lightly, realizing that he was probably at least an hour from any kind of town or even a gas station, reaching over the worn leather console and into the backseat, being careful to keep both his eyes on the road in front of him as well as the one hand on the wheel, he grasped a bag of some random gas station potato chips.

He was getting close now, had to be getting near a couple hours away at least, he'd been in Maine for at least three hours and it wasn't that big of the state. He rolled down the window, the car was too old for an automatic window, and his hand always cramped uncomfortably when he had to contort it to work the ancient old hand crank. He breathed in a deep lungful and couldn't help the smile that started to emerge on his face. He knew that smell. In the way that a man remembers his mother's home, how the mere smell can capture him in a sense of warmth and safety and comfort, this is what sea air did for Percy. Despite being all alone in this new world, with only the brothers as friends and his family in another dimension entirely, he still had the sea and to call his home. And that he could smell it from here meant that he was closing in on his destination. He had to be nearly there, his sense of time must have been more warped then he had anticipated.

He quietly shook his head in a lackluster attempt to clear the fog that was threatening to now engulf him completely. It had never been one of his strong suits, staying awake. Up until a few short years ago he was always all to happy to let himself fall into Morpheus' clutches, then…the pit. 'No' he thought to himself quickly, 'don't think about that! Down that path lay only ruin'. He refused to let those thoughts, those villainous nightmares hidden by the cover of memory, take over his life again. It had happened once already and he refused to let it happen again. Speeding up slightly he was taken aback by the unmistakable sound of metal scraping. The horrible nail on chalkboard like squeal that seemed to be tantamount to nails being driven into your eardrums over and over again. Unconsciously, he floored it, the near decade of heroism and instinct took over and all rational thought left him. He could see a dim light in front of him now, the unmistakable light of a car, growing closer now. As he drew nearer and nearer his keen ears picked up screaming, someone was hurt or…they were about to be. Coming around the last corner he finally came onto the scene. The car, the one he had heard, or at least he assumed it was at was the only vehicle that was damaged, was wrapped almost lovingly around a tree on the side of the road, steam was pouring out of the contorted and misshapen hood, and the air reeked of burnt rubber and something that Percy couldn't place.

On the pavement, maybe twenty feet or so from the wreckage lay a figure, clad in all white and long beautiful auburn hair. In the light from his headlamps Percy could just make out a small red splotch, just under her right shoulder, that seemed to slowly grow the closer he got. Off to her left an older looking man, a wild almost deranged look on his face, was pummeling something that was just outside of Percy's view. 'Probably the aggressor then', Percy thought, as he pulled to a screeching halt maybe 30 feet from the woman lying on the asphalt. Reaching under his seat he quickly unclipped the pistol and steadily made his way towards the wildly attacking man. Whether he just hadn't noticed Percy or just didn't care, the man never looked up from what person could now make out as a man, lying unmoving on the ground.

Looking like a character ripped straight out of a Shakespearian tragedy, the gothic looking man on the ground was drabbed in a black cloak or overcoat, he could just make out a black vest underneath the coat, coated in what he guessed, was his own blood. Leather trousers tucked into more leather-clad boots covered the man's bottom extremities. For a brief moment Percy simply wondered if the man had a fetish for dressing like a pirate dominatrix, but what really caught Percy's attention wasn't the blood, the leather, or the way the beast-like man was beating him half to death despite the pirates being unconscious. No, what really caught Percy's attention was the single, silver, sharp; hook, where pirate's hand ought to have been.

Stopping roughly five away from the men, close to put him down but not too close as to be easily disarmed, Percy had made, and taken advantage of that mistake too many times in the past. Cocking the hammer back, the noise serving to snap the man out of whatever animalistic trance he'd been. Stopping stiffly his arm cocked back to deal another decisive and vicious blow to the man already unconscious on the ground.

"Stand up" Percy commanded, strongly, "Nice and slow, and keep your hands above your head." The man quietly did as he was told, now that he was up close Percy could see just how disheveled the man really was, his long black hair falling like tattered and worn curtains around his gaunt and aging face. The fierce, wild look hadn't left his face, but for a brief, inconceivably shirt moment, a look of shocked recognition shot through the mans face, before it was replaced once more with the bear bestial look of earlier, and kept Percy at a distance. Reaching into his back pocket he grabbed a hold of the wire cufflinks he kept, just in case. It had been drilled into him fairly regularly that it was always better to be over prepared and ready, than under prepared and caught off guard. Throwing the cuffs to the man he said "Put them" the man hesitated for a moment, but a terse look from Percy was enough to convince him to what was asked, albeit begrudgingly so.

"You're making a mistake" the man said bitterly, a faint Scottish drawl making its way into his voice. "He's the dangerous one here! He shot Belle!" he finished angrily. 'So that explains the woman' Percy thought to himself. "Then I'll make sure he gets his just dues, now sit down and shut up" he smiled to himself inwardly, he had always had a rather commanding presence and it was fun to take advantage of it from time to time. Quickly binding the man who supposedly shot the woman, Belle, he reminded himself, he made his way over to him as he pulled out his phone. An old brick-like flip phone, light grey with a single black line going down its spine. It wasn't fancy and couldn't do anything all that impressive but it was enough for Percy.

Quickly dialing nine-one-one he pulled the phone to his as he checked the pulse of the pretty woman lying on the cold asphalt. Her pulse was faint but steady, that was a god sign, and from his limited knowledge of the human body knew that her attacker had missed anything extremely vital. She was very lucky; he guessed that she would likely make a full recovery. A woman's voice, young late twenties or early thirties filled his ear,

"Storybrooke police department this is sheriff Swan how can I help you?" briefly inwardly chuckling at how much their emergency response sounded like a takeout restaurant, he composed himself before responding, "I need a bus to the town line, I've got two wounded, and one GSW in her upper back, she'll be fine but we need to get her out of here soon." There was a pause on the other end of the line before the sheriff responded, quietly, but firmly, with and underlying threat of aggression "Who am I talking to?" She commanded, the lackadaisical and almost bored tone being replaced by one of a veteran commanding officer, the sudden shift caught him off guard, although only momentarily before he responded, "Perry Johnson, I'm a Marine biologist and was going to drive through town when I drove into the accident, you can question me later but Belle here really needs help now!" The line went quiet for a second, before the sheriff replied once more "On my way, sit tight."

Sighing quietly, as the line went completely dead, he set about treating Belle's wound, before attempting to help the person in the car, rushing back to his vehicle he grabbed a first aid kit from the back seat and set back toward Belle. Glancing up he called the man who had been beating the pirate before, "Can I trust you not to attack Shakespeare again if I uncuff you?" The man nodded quickly before looking at the downed woman, tears forming in his eyes, "Please, just let me try and help her" he pleaded quietly, almost pathetically. Nodding in understanding, he had been in the man's shoes before once himself, he uncuffed him, before telling him how to treat the wound, and instructing him to maintain constant pressure.

With that settled he ran over to the crashed sedan, still wrapped around the tree, he couldn't make out any signs of movement as he approached, but that was not necessarily a bad thing, if the unfortunate soul was unconscious, it would make the process of pulling them free from the wreckage considerably easier, if they weren't then he would have to alter his approach slightly. Luck, however, seemed to favor him for once, as he noticed that the man slumped over the steering wheel was completely unconscious, taking a brief look up at the man with Belle, to see he was still completely engrossed in the woman at his knees, Percy quickly ripped the door off the side of the car completely. Ripping the seatbelt off of the injured man and gingerly lifting him up and out of the crushed and battered sedan.

As he trekked back to the road, with the wounded man securely in his grip, the telltale flash of red and blue filled his vision, and the unmistakable "WEE WOO WEE WOO" of a police siren shattered the quiet that had set through the wooded road. The police cruiser, skidded to a halt a short distance away from the crash site, followed by a pair of ambulances and…was that a yellow beetle? Shaking the confusion from his head he quickly brought the man in his arms over to one of the EMS and set him gently down on one of the gurneys before backing off in favor of letting the professionals do their job.

Looking around he could see two people standing next to the gaunt looking man he had been interacting with. The first, a man, stood tall at well over six feet, a leather jacket, and dark button down T-shirt covered a well defined torso, clipped to his faded blue jeans, a standard issue police pistol. A bronze badge shone in the light of the cruisers headlights, which he had obviously come in. Standing next to him was, Percy guessed, the woman he had spoken to on the phone. Covered in a black pea coat, blue jeans, and matching black boots, he couldn't see her face, blocked as it was by her long, flowing, blonde hair. The man, her partner, Percy assumed, nudged her and nodded towards Percy. Her shoulders sagged, signaling she most likely just sighed heavily, he had probably interrupted what had doubtless, in his mind anyways, been a quiet night.

Turning to face Percy he finally got a look at the women, a strikingly good looking woman, he was happy to see that his estimation earlier had been spot on, in her late twenties she had a pretty, angular if not stony face, and a cold harsh look in her eye. This was not a woman to mess with. Marching over towards Percy she stuck her hand out,

"You must be our good Samaritan" she said cautiously "Emma Swan, I'm the town's sheriff, we spoke on the phone" Grasping her smaller hand in his, he was pleasantly surprised by the strength of her grip, giving him the impression that she was attempting to crush his hand in hers. He smiled at her, the most charming smile he could muster and said "Pleasure to meet you sheriff, is everyone gonna be ok?" he asked, he only had to partially feign the concern he felt for the unfortunate victims, he could never quiet shake the hero thing.

The sheriff took a deep breath, looking behind her to see Belle being lifted onto a gurney and into the ambulance just over her right shoulder. Nodding, more to herself than to him it seemed, she looked back at him and said "Yeah, at least I think so. Belle should be alright, thanks to you and he" she indicated with a shake of her head "while pretty shaken, could be a lot worse. You saved some lives tonight Mr. Johnson, you should be proud." He waved his hand, as though trying to physically wave off her congratulatory thanks. "Anyone in my position would have done the same"

The Sheriff smiled, lightly before suddenly turning serious, and said softly and sternly "unfortunately we will need to take you back to the station for some questions about what happened here tonight back at the station." Percy deflated somewhat, he hadn't anticipated having to speak to anybody in an official capacity so soon after arriving, 'but' he supposed to himself 'if this place is what it is supposed to be then maybe I can turn this situation around'. Deciding to simply play the part, he let his face fall slightly before saying, albeit not whiningly but morosely, "Can it wait until morning? I've been driving damn near all night and I'm exhausted" The sheriff smiled apologetically at him. "Unfortunately not" she said, tucking a golden strand of hair behind her ear as she spoke "situations like this aren't all that common around here and the mayor likes them to be taken care of as quickly as possible. We'll make it quick though and hopefully you'll be on your way before too long."

She turned and walked quickly over to her partner, who looked a lot like now that he got a better look at the two of them together, siblings perhaps? She was too old to be a daughter or a niece of some sort. Cousin's maybe, he thought, before tabling the subject for another time. He watched as the two conversed briefly, before she gestured vaguely in his direction. Percy waved at the pair, in what was meant to be friendly, even joking manner. The man didn't take it as such and opted to cross his arms and glare at him. He knew that glare, it was one he himself wore several times in his relatively short life, it was the glare of a man trying to ascertain just what kind of a threat this newcomer posed. Shrugging off the glare Percy responded with a kind smile and stuck his hands firmly into his pockets. He always took a rather perverse pleasure in annoying the overly serious, which explained…'Stop it' he reminded himself, shaking himself from another self-destructive line of thought.

The sheriff gave him a wave that he took to indicate he should follow them, seeing no other real option he strode over to his car, watching the remaining EMS load the pirate into the back. He turned the key over, taking a moment to relish the low, thunder like rumble that emitted from under the hood. Another one of his small pleasures in life, the sound of a powerful engine always served to put a smile on his youthful face.

The ride to police station served as a great preemptive scout for Percy. As the station was near the opposite edge of town, he got to see a majority of the small village, and while nothing immediately jumped out to him as overtly magical, he was growing cautiously optimistic. He just had a feeling, deep in his gut, which he just couldn't help but trust. He had learned over the years to simply trust his instincts when they started shouting. Turning his focus back to the road he began going over his cover story again, changing it up every time slightly as he re told it in his head. It helped the make the story sound less rehearsed, and more natural. Pulling into a parking spot just a few rows down from where the sheriff pulled in he got out, locking the doors behind him. Taking the sheriffs lead he followed her into the station proper.

After a walk down a short poorly lit corridor in which they passed what looked like the main office and the holding cells, they turned into what could only be described as the most stereotypical interrogation room he had ever seen. To be fair, he wasn't exactly and expert on interrogation rooms, even after being on America's most wanted, literally, he had never actually been on the inside of an interrogation room, and he had to say that he was mildly disappointed. The darkened one way mirror, the hard reflective metal table, the uncomfortable straight back chair, the ancient flickering overhead lamp that looked like it had been there since the late sixties, it even smelled like he expected. It was a straight up copy and paste job from every procedural cop show he had ever watched. The sheriff said that they just had a few things to take care of, but that they would be back shortly to take his statement.

Percy was starting to get annoyed at this point, he had been stuck in this sorry excuse for a TV set for the better part of an hour and a half and the sheriff had still not so much as shown her face to tell what the hold up was. After spending the better part of a year pretending to be law enforcement officers of varying levels, he felt that he had a pretty good grasp of standard procedure, and this was most certainly not standard procedure.

He stood up in an attempt to stretch out his sleeping joints, arcing his back, an audible popping noise signaled just how long he'd been stationary. He began to pace around the small room, the last of his patience and will power falling away as his antsiness and ADHD took over. What the hell was taking so goddamn long!

Just as these aggravated thoughts entered his head, the door to the room finally opened up, and an exhausted looking sheriff and her partner from earlier, lumbered into the room. Shifting to face the newcomers he looked at the pair with a charming smile, before asking: "So do you interrogate all the people who stumble on your town, or am I just that special." Rolling her eyes the sheriff, he's pretty sure he heard someone call her Emma at one point, took a seat at the table while motioning for Percy to do the same. Taking her silent request with a smile he sat back down in the uncomfortable chair as the man took an almost protective stance behind her. Husband and wife perhaps? A quick glance at her left hand as she peeled off her jacket proved that thought incorrect.

"This isn't an interrogation" she sighed, clasping her hands on the table.

in front of her. Raising an eyebrow lightly Percy responded, "Then why am I being detained?" "You're not being detained" she answered, sounding exasperated. "But give us a reason and we'll be happy to show you the inside of one of our cells" the man behind her stated, rather gruffly. Shooting her partner, a man she had introduced as David Nolan, a withering look, he closed his mouth and stayed quiet.

"We just want to ask you a few questions about what happened earlier" Sighing, Percy stretched his hands above his head, hearing a satisfying popping sound as his back cracked and lost its stiffness. Squaring himself up to Emma once more, he looked her in the eye before telling her everything he remembered of his encounter. He watched her carefully as he told his tale, looking for any change in body language, facial expression, any change in demeanor that might indicate there was something more to the small town than first appeared.

People often believed that, as a result of his hit first, talk later manner of being, as well his less than stellar scholastic career, that Percy was not an intelligent young man. While it was true that he tended to struggle with long algebra equations, couldn't write a critical analysis essay, or even tell you who the twenty-fourth president was, he was far from unintelligent. He was, however, incredibly gifted in reading a person's body language; often able to anticipate exactly what someone was going to do before they even did it. He had an uncanny ability to read people, the facial expressions for instance. He had a very easy time of being able to sniff out a lie. He had lost his innocent naivety some time ago, yet another casualty of war. It was because of these gifts that he was able to notice the sudden shift when he began to describe the man, whom he learned was called Mr. Gold, had attacked. Describing the man as a "poor attempt at a Captain Hook costume" he had said with a smile and a laugh. The reaction was so fast and so infinitesimal that the average person would have missed it. But he was not the average person. He caught the sudden widening of the eyes in both officers eyes, the way in which officer Nolan tensed his body softly, coiling his muscles slightly as though ready to pounce, before relaxing again, and the way that Sheriff Swan's breathe caught ever so slightly, as though she had caught herself about to gasp.

The moment passed quickly, however, and both played it off as though nothing had happened and ignored it completely. It was enough, though; to tell Percy that something was indeed not quite right with situation, and that was enough to confirm his slight suspicions that there might be more truth to his vision than originally thought.

"So what brings you to our neck of the woods Mr. Johnson?" Swan asked, casually, and, after seeing Percy casually raise his eyebrow, questioningly she clarified "we don't often get visitors around here so seeing two in one night is a little…strange." She shifted slightly, in an attempt to look casual, as she put the finishing touches on Percy's statement. He shifted in his seat, getting into a slightly more comfortable position in the hard, cold, metal chair. "Well like I told you before, I'm an amateur marine biologist, I work as a lab tech for my old undergrad professor at Boston, Robert Plant, I've been trying to pad my resume a little by working for him before I apply to the University of Miami. He asked me to go to a couple of small towns and track some of the migration patterns of the Salmon in the area. I hit up a couple of other lake and ocean cities in the state before my making my way around here, this was gonna be my last stop before heading back to Boston." He inwardly smirked a little, solid story, didn't sound too well rehearsed, he was slightly pleased with himself.

Appeased with the story, indicated by a slight albeit hesitant nod from the sheriff, she wrote the last night line on the statement before telling him, "Well, Mr. Johnson" she said, a little too untrusting for Percy's liking, her eyebrows furrowed slightly and her nostrils slightly flared "Thank you for your cooperation, how long are you planning on staying with us in Storybrooke?" "Oh only a few days, just long enough to finish my report for the professor, and then 'poof' I'll be back on the road." He responded with, what was in his opinion his most charming smile. Apparently neither she, nor her partner found it so, as it only deepened the frowns on both of their faces. She stood up, Percy taking that as his cue, followed suite, "Well enjoy your stay, if we need anything we'll contact you" He smiled and made his way out the door, followed by the two officers, as he was at the exit one small thing occurred to him, turning around, one hand on the handle, the door propped open enough that some of the cool autumn air was seeping into the warm station.

"Know any good B and B's in the area?"


	2. Something Fishy Is Going On

He dumped his bag on the bed with a satisfying thud, and grimaced as puff of bright dust exploded from the covers. "Lovely" he muttered under his breath. So far the trip had not gone to plan, that was to be expected, planned for, but he didn't expect to get involved with the local authorities or catch this much attention so quickly. However, he couldn't just sit there and let the He dumped his bag on the bed with a satisfying thud, and grimaced as puff of bright dust exploded from the covers. "Lovely" he muttered under his breath. So far the trip had not gone to plan, that was to be expected, planned for, but he didn't expect to get involved with the local authorities or catch this much attention so quickly. However, he couldn't just sit there and let the weird Scottish man beat the pirate to death, even if there seemed to be legitimate reason for it, Percy had retained at least some of his morals, and he'd be damned if he let go of them that easily.

Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a small burner phone, a pre-paid phone that couldn't be traced back to him and was meant for using and dumping quickly, and he shot off a quick text to his CO informing them of his arrival. Shutting the phone with a snap, he collapsed backwards and stifled a groan, he was tired, and his ass was sore from the drive, and while he wanted nothing more than to close his eyes and sleep there was work yet to be done.

Sitting back up, he stretched, and was rewarded with several satisfying pops as the kinks in his back and shoulders worked themselves out, or at least worked themselves out as much as they could. Striding over to the window he looked down, he had requested the room facing away from the main street on the back side of the house, and while the crotchety old women running the place had given him a funny look, he didn't care so long as he had an obscured exit from the building.

He slide the window up quietly before vaulting himself over and out the window, landing with silent, practiced thud, of the soft grass below, looking back up, he judged that he would have no difficulty scaling his way back up to the window.

It didn't take him long to find the water, being who he was he had something of a built-in compass. Of all the lies he told Sheriff Swan, studying the salmon hadn't been one, at least not completely. Over the years his best and most reliable sources of information hadn't come from people but from fish, as well as the occasional horse, it didn't hurt that they were always pleased to have the opportunity to speak with him, or anybody for that matter.

He smelled the ocean before he saw it, the strong salt-water berating his sinuses and filling him with the comfortable and welcoming feeling that was most strongly associated with home. The ocean had always been that for Percy, a home, even in times of great strife and turmoil, simply sitting on the sand and basking in the smell of the salt and light slapping of the waves on the shoreline provided a refuge that he was loathe to find anywhere else.

He stepped forward onto the beach, briefly looking around making sure that he was truly alone, before wading his way into the water. His head was barely submerged before a school of salmon swarmed him chattering excitedly and loudly and talking over one another.

"Easy, easy" Percy laughed; fish were like small excitable children, always so eager to please and more than excited for a chance to talk. "I've got some questions for you guys but please" he stressed, "please only speak one at a time" The school seemed to nod as one entity and Percy allowed an easy, genuine smile to fall on his lips. Just like kids. "How long has this town been here? It doesn't show up on any maps, or Google searches. It's as if it just showed up one day and nobody noticed. Do any of you know anything about this-One at time!" he said as he saw all of them look like they were about to talk at once.

"A long, long time" came a young childlike voice from somewhere to his right. "We've been here for many moons, too many."

"What do you mean by that?"

A new voice, to his left this time picked up, "We have seen more than one hundred moon cycles."

That certainly got his attention, lunar cycles took around a month meaning there were around twelve a month, so if they had seen more than one hundred cycles it meant that at a minimum these fish had been around for at least eight years. That might not seem all that significant, except that salmon lived on average between five and eight years and this school still seemed to be in its infantile state and if the fish were to be believed, and Percy had yet to find an unreliable source beneath the waves, the town had been here for that long at a minimum, with the very likely possibility that it had been around for longer. It certainly gave merit to the running theories about the town.

"Do you remember ever living somewhere else besides right here?"

"I remember living up stream a ways"

"I had a really special group of rocks"

"I hatched in a bed of reeds!"

Percy had to resist the urge to groan. He had given them a bit too much credit; he needed to remember that he was essentially dealing with infants.

"Is there anyone a little older I could speak with?"

There was a pause, as the school seemed to collectively rack their brains.

"Nope" came a voice near his foot, "it's just us around here, always has been. We all hatched here"

Now there was something he could potentially use, "You sure they weren't caught, you know, trapped in a net or a big hook or something? Or maybe you just forgot?"

"Nope" somewhere directly in front of him this time, "just us, always has been."

"Does anybody, remember anything at all before hatching?" It was a gamble but not entirely impossible, if something happened right before hatching then it would manifest in their mind somewhere buried. "Even if it's just a reoccurring dream, something strange that doesn't make much sense, or you don't understand. Maybe a smell, or a sound, or-"

"A light" a squeaky voice and Percy immediately rounded on the source, his pulse quickening rapidly, sweat forming on the back of his neck and the hair on his arms rising slightly.

"Go on" he prompted gently,

"Sometimes" it began, its squeaky voice trembling as the poor thing suddenly had everyone's attention, "Sometimes I have this dream, I've had the dream for as long as I can remember. There are lots of other fish swimming around everywhere really fast, they always look so scared and unsure, like something was happening and they didn't know what. Then there's a really, really bright flash. It's really green, green like your eyes, and then nothing. It gets really quiet and I'm all alone and it's really dark and I get so scared and I can't find mama or papa and I get even more scared."

At this point a couple of the older looking fish swam around and surrounded the smaller salmon in what Percy perceived to be a consoling and motion of solidarity.

"And then the smell comes, like something rotten is burning, and that's when I wake up." Percy wasn't entirely sure how a fish living in Maine knew what burning meant or even smelled like but he wasn't going to question it at this point.

"This smell" he began, doing his best to keep his voice low, soft, and light, in order to keep the skittish thing from frightening itself even more. "If you had to put a color to it, what would it be?"

The small salmon paused for a moment thinking, its big eyes blinking slowly as it concentrated. After a long moment it said with a tone of finality, "Yellow. It smells like the color yellow."

Sulfur then, Percy decided, that made sense given the rest of what the fish had just told him. He smiled at the fish, and then at the school at large, "Thank you, all of you, you've been a real big help."

They swam together in what appeared to be a very proud and pleased manner, "You're welcome, your highness" they chanted as one before taking off into the deep.

Once they were gone from sight Percy allowed the smile to drop from his lips, spell-work was definitely at play here. Magic, and powerful magic at that, had brought the town here, and it had existed for at least eight or nine years at the minimum without notice, that meant that the same magic that had brought the town and its inhabitants to Maine, had also been protecting it. It also meant that whoever, or whatever, had brought the town here, was still around, one of the townspeople above and that was disconcerting for its own reasons. The people here were also aware of the situation if the Sheriff and her deputy's total aversion to outsiders and incessant questioning was anything to go by. But these answers only served to raise more questions.

Where had the town come from? Why Maine? Why did the mysterious sorcerer feel the need to transport an entire town, what were they running from? And more importantly who was the spell caster? He certainly had suspicions, logic dictated that the mysterious mayor was the most likely suspect, whoever had the power and will to literally transport an entire towns worth of people was clearly someone who enjoyed no small amount of power and would like to maintain that power, however Percy would keep his mind open, better to be safe than sorry but it was a definite that the spell-caster was a prominent member of the community which at least would give him a starting point.

BREAK

It had been a very long night, and it appeared that it would only get longer of Sherriff Emma Swan of the Storybrooke Police Department. Her quiet night of paperwork had been shattered by the sudden attack at the town line that left two people in surgery, two innocent people caught in the crossfire of two feuding parties who simply would not stop until the other was dead. Then there was the fact that one of the injured parties was an outsider who ran the risk of discovering exactly what their little town really was, a safe haven for every fairytale in the book. She was still coming to grips with that herself. There was also Doctor Whale who had disappeared for several hours inexplicably before finally reappearing to operate on the poor man and finally was the strange Perry Johnson, the man who had stopped Gold from beating Hook to death. No doubt she was grateful for the man's intervention but it was just another headache she had to deal with and she was just not in the mood for it at the moment. She and David, she refused to call a man her own age her father for a number of reasons, pulled into the still bustling hospital parking lot.

"Whale should be done by now so that's one headache taken care of" David said in what could only be described as fatherly, with a hint of the old lords edge behind it.

"One gone and another takes its place." Emma muttered to herself, it was like that dragon thing she had read about in school a lifetime ago, you cut one head off and another took its place. It certainly felt like being the Sheriff of the small little forest town was like battling a multi-headed dragon. Nothing but problems and as soon as one was resolved another took its place. She needed a vacation she thought scornfully.

As soon as they were through the doorway Leroy, Ruby, Mary-Margaret, and Dr. Whale, who pushed himself to the front, swarmed them. "The surgery was a success" he said, his voice ever the quiet almost murmur, "Your boy will live to crash another day, now if you'll excuse me" and before she could even reply he was gone, not that she would have had something to say either way. She was actually rather thankful that he had chosen to just relay information and get out of her hair, less hassle going her way.

"Well that's one headache gone" Said Leroy gruffly, watching after Whales billowing coattail.

"Really getting sick of people saying that" Emma said under breathe, but if the look Ruby shot her was any indication, not that quietly, "We just got back from meeting with our good Samaritan, Perry Johnson."

"And?" Leroy demanded, only to roughly elbowed by Mary-Margaret

"What he means?" she said, glaring at Leroy who, to his credit, didn't even bat an eye at. "Is what did you learn about him"

"That he's a damn good liar" surprisingly the grown came from David, not Emma. Huh, she had pegged him as fairly gullible, but she would have had to get it from somewhere she supposed, and just like that she felt uncomfortable again and squashed that line of thinking as violently as possible.

"He says that he's an aspiring Marine Biologist working for his old professor back in Massachusetts and he was coming through here to study the local salmon. He was convincing, but he was definitely hiding something. After all, I've never known a Marine Biologist to be packing heat." She joked tossing her hair over shoulder as she did so.

"He was also trying a little too hard to be charming" David said,

"What's wrong big guy, scared of a little competition?" Ruby snarked, a feral looking grin on her face showing lots of pearly white teeth. David gave her an un-amused stare in return.

"What's got you so rattled?" Emma asked, "You were hyper aggressive in interrogation and now this, you know something you'd like to share with the class? You know who this guy is or might be?"

"No" he replied sounding thoroughly frustrated, "There's just something about him that sets me on edge. I can't help it, maybe it's cause he reminds me a little too much of the pirate."

"Speaking of" Emma, asked, changing topics, "How's gimpy doing? He staying quiet?"

"Yeah sister, he's been quiet, I had some of the boys take up guard duty outside his room, he wont be pulling nothing while they're around, that's a guarantee." Leroy said, puffing his chest out slightly

"Right." Emma replied, unsure how to really respond to that.

"So what do we do about mystery guy?" asked Ruby, getting back to the topic of conversation.

"Not much we can really do other than watch him and wait to see if he does something" Emma said bitterly, "We can't exactly just kick him out of town now can we?" Everyone seemed to share a bit of an uncomfortable look at that, "What?" she asked, she did not appreciate not being in the loop.

"It's nothing honey, really" Mary-Margaret said quickly for the group, looking to do a little damage control before it was too late.

Emma wanted to argue, but she was too tired to do much of anything else at the moment, so instead she checked her watch and yawned largely. "Whatever, you guys do whatever it is you wanna do, we can deal with this is the morning but it's beyond late and I really need some sleep I'm going to go deal with Mr. car crash victim and go home. See you guy's in the morning." She turned on her heel and strode out of the room before anyone could say otherwise.

She stopped briefly at the nurse's station and grabbed his personal effects, wrapped up in a plastic sandwich bag, and approached the bed of the injured man. He was a miserable sight, his face was scratched and cut in odd places and he had the makings of a real good shiner under his right eye. As she approached he pitifully turned his head, a movement which he managed to make look painful and pathetic, before he groaned out,

"Nurse?" his voice was scratchy, like someone who had been without water for far too long.

"Sheriff Swan, actually."

He began shifting uncomfortably under his blankets, "I'm thirsty," he moaned, looking woefully at a glass of water by his bedside. Resisting the urge to roll her eyes in exasperation she walked around the edge of the bed, grasped the water and handed it to him, watching as he took it into his hands shakily and took a long, and drawn out pull from the lime green straw in the glass.

"I have you personal effects" she said, the words coming out slightly awkward, evidence of her nervousness and uncertainty of the situation, "I'm just gonna put them here, okay?" and she placed them on the small nightstand next to his bed. She adjusted her shirt and steeled herself for the conversation she really did not want to be having. "So Mr. Mendell, I wanted to talk to you about your accident."

"Did I hit somebody?" he caught the look on her face before she could hide it, Oh, my god. I hit someone." He moaned, "Is he ok?"

"I think he'll be fine" came a new voice from the doorway. Emma had to restrain herself from groaning as Perry Johnson walked into the room, this was really not what she needed, both of her biggest problems in the same room.

"Mr. Mendell, this is Mr. Johnson, he was the one who called the ambulance for you." Johnson approached, that big dopey grin splattered on his face. "Although I can't help but wonder" she said, and was proud that it came out through only slightly gritted teeth, "exactly what he's doing here, I thought you'd be in bed by now Mr. Johnson."

He turned his grin towards her now, a flash of something in his eyes. "I tried, but I just couldn't get to sleep, needed to see that everyone was safe for myself you know?" and she actually believed that. Despite all the bull he'd fed her and David earlier in the evening, that was at least true, he seemed genuinely invested in the well being of the people he helped.

"Well thank you very much for helping me Mr. Johnson." Mendell said, extending a rather limp arm to shake with Johnson's who did so enthusiastically.

"It was no problem sir, anyone in my position would have done the same."

Mendell then turned his attention back to Emma, "You were gonna say something about the man I hit, is he okay?"

"Don't worry about him-" she said, which was most definitely the wrong thing to say as he grew rather alarmed and even Johnson looked at her strangely, "I mean the damage was pretty minor." She hastily added, she was majorly out of practice with talking to normal people.

That seemed to relieve him though as he exhaled a deep breath, "Oh thank god." He murmured and Johnson started smiling again.

"See!" Johnson said, "All's well that ends well."

Emma ignored him, I will need your statement though, just usual procedure that kind of thing."

"Can it wait until morning?" he asked, pleaded really, "I'm very tired, I can barely keep my eyes open."

She wanted to say no, that this couldn't wait until the morning and that she needed to be sure that he hadn't seen anything he shouldn't, namely Mr. Gold hurling fireballs around like it was no big deal. But she caught Johnson's eye, and for whatever reason, whether it was the genuine look of pleading, or maybe she was simply too tired to be thinking all that straight, she agreed and after saying both she and Johnson said their goodbyes, the pair left the injured man to his rest.

"Why are you really here, Mr. Johnson?" She asked, rounding on him the moment the door to the ward was closed.

"What do you mean? I'm here to check up on everyone that got hurt, you don't believe me?" he looked genuinely insulted and a little hurt by her accusatory tone.

"No, no, sorry I just-sorry never mind." She rambled, her brain was mush, "Just do me a favor, stay away from the guy with a missing hand, he's a seriously bad dude, and be careful around Belle, the woman from before, her…boyfriend can be a bit overprotective and he was not in a good mood last you saw him."

"Stay away from gimpy and be careful of rage-bro. Got it" he smiled again, and she couldn't bring herself to challenge him any more tonight. Instead she turned on her heel and waved goodbye. She really hoped there wouldn't be any more surprises for at least a few more hours yet.

Percy watched her retreating form, a frown etching its way onto his face. She certainly didn't seem too happy to see him, not a surprise really all things considered but still, she was definitely hiding something. But that was a matter later served for tomorrow, for tonight, he genuinely was only in the hospital to check up on the injured Miss Belle, being shot could be…traumatic and it would serve them both good if they could clear the air a little bit between them.

It didn't take him long to find her room, a quick look at the log books at the Nurses station told him where he needed to go. When he found her, he was immediately set on edge. Something was broken, a porcelain bowl or cup, over against the far wall, and he didn't need empathetic powers to see that she was very clearly shaken up about something. She had her knees pulled up into her chest, and was using her arms as a pillow as she sobbed quietly. Her petite shoulders shuddering with every shaky breath.

It felt wrong to interrupt but he wasn't the type to leave anyone alone when they were hurting, it was just in his nature. He rapped his knuckles against the door to the ward, but she didn't seem to hear it, either that or she chose to ignore it. He tapped again, slightly louder this time, and still, he got no response from the woman. So he cleared his throat, loudly, and her head shot up out of her arms,

"I thought I told you to go away!" she shouted, her eyes bleary and raw from her crying, harsh looking bruises, already purpling on her forehead, would serve as a harsh reminder of the evenings events and served to knot Percy's stomach in on itself. It reminded him too much of days best forgotten. Her eyes widened as her vision cleared and she made Percy out a bit more clearly. "Oh my God" she said, a startled hand coming to her mouth in seemingly abject horror, "I'm so, so sorry, I thought-I had thought you might-you might be someone else." He couldn't place her accent, Australian maybe? It was certainly Saxon in in nature at any rate.

He allowed a calm and easy smile to fall onto his lips, and tried to put some light laughter behind his words, "It's alright, no need to apologize." He stuck his hand out, "My name is Perry, Perry Johnson. I'm the one who called you the ambulance."

Her eyes went from his face to his hand, and back to his face, before an uneasy, but true smile found its way onto her lips. She had a nice smile. She grasped his hand, softly yet firmly, and gave it a firm shake.

"Well thank you Mr. Johnson, you have my gratitude."

"Please" he smiled, "Just call me Perry, and it was nothing, anyone in my position would have done the same. I'm just thankful that everyone is alive and well." Her smile faltered a bit at that, enough for Percy to notice, "I take it I'm not the only visitor you've had tonight. Something happen? Do I need to beat someone up? I'll do it, I'm feisty I'll have you know." He pronounced this with a little bounce on his feet and a goofy look on his face. His silliness had the desired effect as Belle broke out into tinkling giggles.

"Stop, please stop" she laughed, a hand on her stomach trying to quell the bubbling laughter, "I appreciate the gesture but no, thank you though." She settled down a little and a more somber expression made its way onto her lips, "There was a man who came in here earlier, and he just scared me a little is all." She pointed to the smashed porcelain against the wall, "He gave me that cup and tried to tell me it was magical or some such nonsense, I'm not sure but he made me feel uncomfortable."

"Magic?" Percy asked, raising an eyebrow and purposefully inflecting his voice with a healthy measure of skepticism, " Was this guy for real?" This might have been his guy after all.

She shrugged, "Couldn't tell you, he seemed very genuine though, as though he really believed what he was saying, I don't know though I don't remember him so I couldn't say"

"Can't remember?"

She nodded, "Doctor Whale said that I hit my head when I fell, I can't remember much of anything at all."

Percy winced sympathetically, been there done that, he thought bitterly and with no small amount of pity for the poor girl. Losing his memory had been one of the worst experiences of his life, and he could fully empathize with the woman in the bed. "That sucks" he said bluntly and she shrugged again, she'd been doing that a lot.

"Doctor Whale says it might come back to me in time" Percy nodded to that, and looked at his watch,

"Well I just stopped by to check on you, and make sure that you were ok, but it's been a long day for both of us and I think we probably ought to get some sleep don't you think?" as he was saying this a shuddering yawn ran through Belles body and Percy couldn't quite stifle the laugh that came forward.

"I suppose I should get some rest…" she said sadly, a frown once again marring her features.

He sighed internally, though there was no real annoyance behind it, "I can come back tomorrow though, chat for a bit. I'm in town for a couple of days and I know how much being in the hospital can suck."

That got her to smile again, "I'd like that very much Perry" and with that the two bid one another goodnight, and Percy strode out into the cool autumn night. 

Though neither was aware of the third party witness to their interaction, one who was already planning and scheming for what they could do with this newfound information.


	3. Horses and Pirates, and Giants, Oh my!

He cast a calculating gaze over the array in front of him. It was almost perfect, almost. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out the final ingredient. A little clear bottle that held a strange watery, blue liquid. He pulled the stopper off of the bottle and slowly drew a several drops of the liquid into the baster. He carefully positioned over one of his glasses and let three drops of the blue liquid into the cup. He had to be careful, too many and there would be a noticeable taste, which would be unacceptable, but too few and the effect would not be substantial enough. No, he reasoned to himself, three was just enough.

He put the stopper back on the bottle, and placed it gently in his pocket. Picking up a spoon, he gently began stirring clockwise. It would ten spins clockwise, then five counter-clockwise. After the final stir, he pulled the spoon out, wiped it with a napkin, and placed it gently back down on the table, and sat back to observe his handy work. The liquid in the glass, once pearly white, was now a deep blue. He couldn't keep the smile off of his face as he grabbed the glass and took a deep pull.

A throat cleared and dragged him out of his reverie,

"What did you do to that milk?" asked Ruby, the mainstay waitress of the diner, incredulously. A look of confusion and mild disgust on her face.

"Oh" started Percy feeling not the least bit embarrassed, "It's just some food dye; long story."

Ruby opened her mouth to respond, but what saved the trouble when the door to the diner rang. The pair instinctively looked as a tall dark-haired woman marched into the diner. Ruby shot Percy a sympathetic glance before scurrying off to another table. Percy felt a brow raise slightly as he caught the eyes of the new woman. He could tell that she was powerful, literally and figuratively as the hairs on the back of his arms rose, and a familiar tingle ran through his lower back. She was confident in her stride, the walk of someone who knew that they could only rely on themselves, and trusted only themselves. She was someone who had worked for all she had, and fight tooth and nail for what she wanted.

He carefully lowered his glass to the table and leaned back in his booth, crossing his arms. She put on a disarming smile as she approached, and Percy was struck by how devastatingly fake it felt.

"Mr. Johnson?" she asked as she approached, extending a hand or him to shake. He only hesitated for a second before he grasped her hand in a firm shake. He needed to roll with the punches when he was this deep.

"Got it in one" he said, dropping a wry grin, "I didn't realize that I'd made such an impression on the sheriff that she'd sick the mayor on me" She hid her surprise well, but her eyes did widen slightly, betraying her. She recovered quickly however, and crossed her arms under her chest"

"How'd you know I was the mayor?" Her tone was light but there was an undercurrent of steel. Percy already had a step up on her and she clearly didn't like playing defensively.

He allowed his smile to broaden and he winked at her, "That would be telling." Keep them off-balance, and keep them guessing. Don't let you opponents guess your motives or intentions and you'll be sure of victor. It had always surprised Percy how easily tactics of war could be reapplied and translated into politics.

"So do you personally greet everyone who stumbles into town?"

"We don't get a lot of visitors around here, and suddenly we have two in one day, and one of them pulls a gun on one of our residents. I thought that a personal introduction was prudent." Percy choked down a scoff at the lie. She was making a power play, trying to intimidate and bully him into skipping town.

"I hear that you are a marine biologist?" he nodded, "If you don't mind me asking, what is a marine biologist doing in Maine? Surely your…talents would be better suited somewhere further south? Or even the Great Lakes region?" Percy allowed a large grin to nearly split his face, he probably shouldn't intentionally antagonize the women but he couldn't help himself.

"On the contrary, the little harbor you have is perfect for studying the effects of rapid industrial expansion on migratory patters. You have species in your harbor that shouldn't be there and it could take me a month at the least to get a good read on the situation." He paused and allowed that to sink in for a moment in order to gauge her reaction. He wasn't disappointed. She lost the façade for a moment as her entire body stiffened and her hands clenched tightly into fists. He felt more than saw what happened next. There was a distinct distortion, a literal shifting of the winds as the temperature of the room seemed to drastically increase, and Percy thought he felt a light breeze pick up in the diner. There a was distinct absence of a fan in the diner. Glancing down he noticed the air around her hands distorted.

She noticed however and in the blink of an eye everything returned to normal. The occupants of the diner, who had been watching the interaction with a disconcerting sense of pity, hastened to appear as though they were minding their own business. Percy continued, attempting to look as though he had not noticed the strange occurrence.

"Besides, you have a beautiful town here and I'd love the chance to explore a bit more" he smiled again at her and watched as she fought to control herself. His initial assessment had been a little off, she was not as composed as she would like people believe.

It took her a moment but she finally managed to force a smile, but it looked like it physically pained her.

"Well, Mr. Johnson, as…pleasant as this was, I must be going. Take care, and don't get into any trouble." Se turned and began striding away. Percy stopped her,

"By the way, Madam Mayor, I never did get your name." She turned slowly, looking him in the eye appraisingly,

"You may call me Mayor Mills" and she stiffly turned on her heels and left the diner.

Percy sat back in his chair and considered what he had just been party to. Mills was most definitely the one in charge, and likely the one behind the sudden surge in magical energies throughout the region. She had control issues too; he would have fun with that. He also knew that despite the teasing, the woman was dangerous, anyone with that much potent magical energy was. He also knew that he had the advantage, she would have to hold her façade so long as she thought he was a mortal. He had some trump cards in his pocket but he'd rather not have to play them if he didn't have to.

Percy was broken out of his musings by a sudden presence occupying the previously empty chair in front of him. A boy, maybe ten years old at the oldest, with dark brown hair, a round face, and dimpled cheeks, stared at him, as though he could unlock the mysteries of the universe simply by gazing at Percy. It was unnerving and more than a little creepy, especially since Percy was fairly certain that the kid hadn't blinked in almost a minute.

Raising a brow Percy said, "Can I help you?"

"Maybe" was the high-pitched response. "I don't know who you are yet. But I'll figure it out."

Percy felt himself backing into the seat of his chair ever so slightly. He had watched, and lived through, enough horror movies to know that imperiously curious children were never a good omen. He looked around seeing if he could get gauge whether this was normal behavior or not. Catching Ruby's eye he relaxed slightly as she turned her back to him, stuffing a fist in her mouth to quell the laughter that threatening to break free from her. Her shaking shoulders shattered whatever illusion she was trying to create.

Looking around the rest of the diner he noticed that the other patrons were in equal states of mirth and allowed himself to fully relax. He let the tension in his shoulders loosen, and he sheathed the blade that he slid out of his upper jacket sleeve. Some would call that dangerous paranoia, others would call it intelligent survivalist intuition. Either way, Percy figured it probably wasn't a healthy mind whose first impulse was to pull a knife on a ten-year old.

"You're a little weird, aren't you kid." Percy said, repositioning himself so he square to both the kid and the door.

The kid frowned and crossed his arms "That was rude"

"So was sitting down uninvited and asking invasive"

The kid opened his mouth to retort, but closed it, and frowned. Percy smiled, entirely too pleased that he had outwitted a ten-year old. Truly Percy was a hero of the people.

After a brief moment of continued silent staring the kid, huffed and said, "Well!"

Percy arched an eyebrow and smothered a smile "Well what?" he asked,

"Aren't you going to introduce yourself?" the kid demanded.

"Aren't you?" Percy responded, smiling broadly now, having too much fun messing the child in front of him. He couldn't help himself, it was entirely too much in his nature to be a sarcastic asshole whenever he could be.

The kid glared heatedly at him, but before he could say whatever he was going to say, he was interrupted by Sheriff Swan bustling over, "Henry, there you are I was looking-oh, Mr. Johnson, erm, nice to uh, see you again." Swan stumbled over herself as she looked back and forth between Henry and Percy. After a second her look of confusion took on a more heated predatory look that Percy thought was more befitting on a large dog than a grown woman. "What's going on here" Although to be fair, it looked like the target of her sudden annoyance and anger was Henry, more than him.

The boy in question had the decency to redden and look thoroughly chastised. "Nothing mom, I was just introducing myself that's all." Mom? That one threw Percy for a loop. Mean and angry eyed Sheriff Swan certainly didn't strike him as the motherly type but who was he to judge. Deciding that discretion was the better tactic he cleared his throat,

"Henry here was just introducing himself," he shot a disarming smile the boys way and received an acidic glare in response.

"Right…" Swan said in disbelief. "Anyways, you ready to go kiddo?"

"Yes Mom." He said with a heavy eye roll. Emma responded with a look of her own, the look that is solely reserved for mothers. Henry looked sheepishly down at his shoes and muttered, "I'll go double check" and slinked out of his chair and out of the diner with Emma calling after him,

"And be sure to go to the bathroom, I don't want to stop twenty minutes into the drive!"

Percy allowed a sardonic smile onto his face, memories of his own mother and summer drives to Montauk running through his head. He looked up at Emma, pushing the nostalgia away for something a little more pressing.

"Running away already sheriff? I didn't realize that I was that repulsive."

Swan ignored the "You're not" from Ruby behind the counter and said, "Believe it or not, even Sheriff's are allowed to take vacation days every now and then."

Percy raised his hands in mock surrender, "Holster the weapons there Sheriff, I meant no offense."

Swan opened her mouth to retort but was kept from it by the reemergence of Henry. "Ready to go mom." He shot Percy one more glare and scampered out the door and stood next to the haggard elderly man that Percy arrested the other night. Swan shook her head and walked out briskly after her son. Percy watched idly as they climbed into the small yellow bug, and he felt a pulse of nostalgia and irritation shoot through him as he eyed the small, beat-up roadster, the memory of a beat-up, baby blue beetle with a mismatched door and the utter hell that was associated with it.

Shrugging the memory off he turned his attention back to his coffee and thought on the opportunity that he now had. He assumed that there was likely a back-up sheriff who would be acting in her stead, but since Swan herself was assuredly not a cop, it was a safe assumption that whoever her stand-in was, would also likely not be active law-enforcement. It would make skulking around a bit easier, the strange old man with sinister aura leaving town also made things slightly simpler. The only real complication to his investigation would be the mayor, she was obviously magical and so he would need to put down some safeguards against magical observation.

That was the trick however, when dealing with magic you couldn't just cut off the source of the magic, that was a surefire way of drawing attention, instead he would need to redirect her focus onto something more interesting and worth observing than himself. He held no illusion that she would not be watching him either, someone that powerful does not like to deal in unknowns and he was most certainly an unknown. He also did not fully understand the scope of her magical ability or how her magic operated, it felt very different from the stuff he was used to dealing with. He didn't have any ideas for these shortcomings at the moment but his conversation with the Sheriff had sparked something of an idea, something he should have done from the beginning but hadn't considered until just now.

He waited until Ruby made her way back towards his side of the restaurant before flagging her down, "Hey, I know this might be a long shot but, are there any stables around here?"

He waited until the ranch-hand had turned the corner and Percy felt he was well out of earshot, before he grabbed the reins of the large chestnut stallion and began the a march towards the pasture edge. He reached the edge of the pasture, right where the field ended and the large forest began, and he turned and looked into the dark brown eyes of the creature in front of him.

He waited until the ranch-hand had turned the corner and Percy felt he was well out of earshot, before he grabbed the reins of the large chestnut stallion and began the a march towards the pasture edge. He reached the edge of the pasture, right where the field ended and the large forest began, and he turned and looked into the dark brown eyes of the creature in front of him.

BREAK

"Sea Biscuit, really?" He asked dryly, before realizing that the horse most likely was not the most up-to-date on 21st century pseudo pop-culture, and would not understand the joke. Sure enough, the beast snorted through its large nostrils, and stamped its hooves in agitation. In Percy's mind, a commanding, and regal voice, befitting that of an aging queen, filtered through.

"I beg your pardon, but that name was a gifted to me by the high-king of the realm, something a peasant such as yourself would not understand. Honestly, the youth of today have no respect, and I don't even know why I'm bothering it's not like-"

"I can understand what you're saying?" Percy finished, doing his best to keep his gaze level, as he basked in watching the horse splutter in confusion.

"You can understand me?" it was a statement. He nodded. "You can understand horses?" he nodded again. Sea Biscuit paused for moment and closed her eyes as she attempted to compose herself. When she spoke again, her voice was little more than a whisper, "What are you?" she asked.

"I'm one-of a kind."

"Don't be smart with me boy, I've been around a very long time and have met many humans, I know humans well; how they think, act, speak, and feel. I know humans, and you are no human. So, I will ask you again demon, what are you?"

Percy looked away for a moment and considered his options, he honestly hadn't expected this, normally after speaking for a bit Horses understood who and what he was, or if not that, they at least gathered that he was different from other humans and instinctually understood that he was important in some way. However, they were never as intelligent and rationale as the being in front of him, which begged several questions of themselves. After a moment's respite he decided that there was no harm in honesty, if what he was beginning to suspect was true, there would be no harm in it.

"Does the name Poseidon, mean anything to you?" he asked cautiously. He waited for a spark of recognition, many a stamping of hooves or loud whinny but nothing happened.

"Should it?" she asked. Percy tiredly ran a hand through his hair and weighed his options, again. After a moment's hesitation he made a decision.

"Let's make a deal, I tell you what you want to know, and in exchange, you answer some questions from me. Sound fair?" the Sea Biscuit lolled her head to the side slowly for a few moments. Her eyes were darting back and forth indicating her furious thinking. Percy saw her make up her mind and knew that her curiosity had won out.

"Agreed" she said simply, and so Percy began to fill her in. He only gave her the basics; he told her about the gods, about his immortal father and his mortal mother, he told her about what he was and how he was able to communicate with her. He kept it short and to the point, not telling her anything she didn't need to know, he knew that he didn't have to be purposefully vague since he was the only person able to understand her but he was a cautious man. Years of experience and painful lessons had taught him the value of information and, more importantly, the value of tricking someone into thinking they had more information than they really did. So he kept it vague enough but intriguing enough to get her thinking and pondering as well as satiate her own curiosities.

She silent for a long time, Percy watched as the sun crept closer and closer to their shady little nook, nestled in the tree line. They must have stood like that for fifteen minutes, maybe longer, before Sea Biscuit finally spoke again.

"This was supposed to be a land without magic" she said, her voice so soft in his head that he almost missed it entirely. His head snapped toward her, eyes bugging out of his head.

"What do mean, 'this was supposed to be a land without magic'." He demanded sharply, "Are you implying that you're not from this world."

Sea Biscuit just dipped her head in resignation, and softly and sadly padded her hoof into the soft earth.

"What. Do. You. Mean" he ground out, this was no longer a time to play nice, not when something monumental was apparently happening in this tiny little backwoods town. The idea that his situation was not abnormal, that somehow, someway, it was possible that he wasn't the only person here that didn't belong. He squashed the feeling of hope that was threatening to spring free from his chest. He wouldn't let himself become hopeful just for those hopes to be once again crushed under foot.

She raised her eyes up level with his, they were shining like she wanted to cry, like something unbelievably, and irreversibly terrible had occurred. Then she told him. Told him how she had overheard her master King David and her Mistress Snow, discussing what they knew, about how the Evil Queen was planning a curse on the whole kingdom. She told him about the plan to keep Emma, their daughter safe, and that they would use some sort magical creation to send her to a place without magic where she would be safe and looked after. She told him about the horrible green fog that descended on them and the never-ending blackness. She told him all about Emma's arrival to the town and how she lifted the curse, the stable and ranch hands were apparently great gossips.

Percy waited until she was done, he had about a thousand questions running through his head, but there was only one that was driving him crazy. So after he gave her a moment to collect herself he asked the question he had been bursting to ask for fifteen minutes. She had mentioned names like Geppetto, Pinocchio, the blue fairy, and others. He needed to clarify.

"You mentioned someone named Snow…you don't mean like Snow White or something do you?" Sea Biscuits eyes bulged and now it was her turn to turn sharply and question him,

"How did you know?" she asked, "I thought you didn't know any of this, I thought you weren't from our realm so how do you know of the Queen?" she demanded.

Percy didn't answer, he felt faint, his legs buckled and he collapsed onto the ground, back pressed u against the tree. He raised his hands to his face and slowly rubbed at his eyes. He felt about one hundred years older at that moment; he was exhausted and entirely unprepared to deal with this. Ignoring everything else, ignoring the earth-shattering revelation that he was not the only dimension, or realm as Biscuit put it, traveller, ignoring the fact there was magic powerful enough to transport an entire kingdom across space and time, ignoring the painful realization that the "Evil Queen" whom he was sure was Regina, had brought these people here knowing full well that there would be no way to go back or utilize those same magic's again. Ignoring all of these factors, there was but one pervasive thought that penetrated his consciousness.

Gods. Damned. Disney.

BREAK

It didn't take long before Henry was fast asleep in the back seat. Car journey's as well as early mornings are never particularly easy on kids his age. Gold turned in his seat and looked at the boy, studied his breathing, and made sure he was asleep. When he was certain, he turned back and addressed Swan seated next to him.

"We have business to discuss Miss Swan." He said smoothly, his voice barely above a whisper. Swan arched an eyebrow and looked over to him.

"I already agreed to help you out here Gold, I'm not sure what else-"

"It's nothing to do with Bae," he snapped. He took a moment and recomposed himself. "I'm considered with the newcomer."

"Who? Mendell? He's harmless" she said

"Not him! The other one!"

"Johnson?" she asked cautiously. She'd had reservations about the man but seeing Gold this jumpy about him was giving her pause. "You know him or something?"

"No" he growled, "And that, is exactly the problem"

Now Swan was getting legitimately concerned, she wasn't exactly afraid of Gold, but she did have a healthy respect for the power he could throw around. For him to be this keyed up and wound tight over someone was cause for considerable alarm.

"Ok" She said slowly and carefully, trying to hide her own rising anxiety. "What about him?"

"He's not who he says he is, please tell me Miss Swan that you are not so unbelievably dense that you did not realize that he is hiding his identity and his purpose for being in Storybrooke."

She grimaced, because she had noticed that something was off with him. She knew he had been hiding his identity, she had called both of the Universities he claimed to come from but both of them claimed that they had never even heard of Perry Johnson, much less taught or employed him; but she was sure that he hadn't lied about being a marine biologist, and he had certainly seemed like he knew what he was doing. Besides that she had asked around, he spent almost the first two days he had been in the town either at the beach or at the harbor, he had rented a boat and had spent almost an entire day out on the water doing…something.

"He's not normal." Gold said without waiting for a reply, looking like he'd been forced to swallow something foul.

Swan frowned, "What do you mean? Is he magical or something?"

Gold shook his head in exasperation, clearly annoyed that she wasn't understanding him, "I mean that he's different dearie. There's something about him that I can't place, a power and a presence quite unlike anything I have ever felt before. He is doing his best to mask it but I can still feel it."

"Alright…" Emma said slowly, her grip tightening on the steering wheel, "So what exactly, I can't just arrest, he hasn't done anything except annoy the hell out of me. And no" She said, catching his look out of the corner of her eye, "You can't kill him, either." Now it was Gold's turn to grimace as he admitted quite possibly the last thing she had ever expected to hear from him.

"I honestly don't know if I could even if I tried. I don't know what he's capable of, I don't know where he is from and believe me dearie with power like that had he been around he must certainly would have been on my radar. I have a rule Miss Swan, never start a fight that you are not one-hundred percent positive you cannot win. No, what I am suggesting, is that we keep him under surveillance, investigate, detect, you know Sheriff." He stressed the word harshly and spat out the next sentence "Do your damn job."

"You think I haven't been trying? I've called in almost every favor I ever got from Long Island to Jacksonville and none of them could dig up anything on the guy. He's a ghost, a non entity. Perry Johnson doesn't exist!"

"Sure he does" came a voice from directly behind Swan, who jumped in her seat and screamed loudly, jerking the steering wheel hard to the left on instinct and throwing the car into oncoming traffic just as another car was coming up on them. Instinctually, Swan wrenched the steering wheel the other direction and swerved the yellow beetle back into their lane, barely missing a collision with the small oncoming SUV who sounded their horn, loudly and angrily.

"Henry! Don't do that to me kid, you nearly got us killed!"

He shied away from that and she felt herself threaten to soften but resolved to maintain a stern look, this was a teachable moment and she had to be a mother so she continued to glare into the rearview mirror and let him sweat. Gold took the initiative and asked,

"What exactly do you mean by that?" he asked, long experience with the boy had taught them both the importance of at least humoring him when he had an idea, he had an annoying habit of seeing things that they didn't.

Henry paused and looked up, looking chastened, "Just that everybody has to be somebody right? And that he wouldn't have come to Storybrooke if it weren't for a reason, just look at mom. She was destined to come to Storybrooke, which means that if these guys have come to Storybrooke, it means that they were meant to come to Storybrooke. It's the only explanation." He paused to take a breath and then said quietly, more to himself than anyone, "I also know that I know him from somewhere, I just don't remember where."

Swan had to keep herself from actively rolling her eyes, she knew she shouldn't knew the thought maybe deserved some credence, after all he had been right about her but still, it was hard to differentiate between what seemed like genuinely good advice and what was just the underdeveloped understanding that comes with youth. Still, as she took the net exit towards the Maine border, she vowed that she would keep an open mind, and more importantly, keep a closer eye on their mystery guest with the sea green eyes.

BREAK

It was an overcast sky that found a limping and hobbling man, drabbed in a stark black cloak and undershirt shirt, leather trousers, and most noticeable of all, was the missing left hand. Captain Hook sighed roughly as wandered through the alley by the harbor, racking his brain to figure out a solution to his growing dilemmas. He was brought out of his reverie by a strange and abrupt blowing of winds behind him, he knew that entirely too well and spun on his heel. He narrowed his eyes briefly before changing tactics and giving his best smile.

"Regina." He said cordially, making a show out of looking the dark haired woman up and down with a raised brow.

"Expecting my mother?" She asked, delicately plucked brow raised. A soft albeit menacing picture. "The one you were supposed to kill?" Hook suppressed a shiver and forced himself to look her in the eye. He was treading on dangerous ground now, there were legends of the Queens vindictiveness and he would not become party to those legends if he could help. He opted for disarming wit as his weapon of choice.

"Oh, that." He said dismissively, as though he was talking about something trivial like he forgot to turn a light off and not premeditated murder. "Well, I didn't wanna deprive you of a happy reunion."

She smiled acidly at that and he gulped, "Well, it's your lucky day." She said "She and I have made amends." His blood ran cold, he could maybe survive one of them, he could run, hide and survive, and it was what he was good at. Both of them though? He couldn't do that, he would need to do damage control, make himself useful or necessary in some way.

"And you're here to thank me? How sweet." When in doubt, wit-it-out. Buy yourself time with wit and sarcasm, give yourself time to think and adapt and keep them guessing, don't let your opponent guess your motives.

"She wants to know if they've found the ship."

"Well, you can tell her she can ask me herself." He was getting exasperated; the conversation wasn't going anywhere and was a waste of time. It was no longer his problem, he had done his job and he just wanted out. He had plans to make.

"She just decided it wouldn't be prudent for her to be out and about." He had to concede that point, with the good king and his lovely queen head hunting and armed to the teeth was not a healthy environment for whomever the poor soul they were searching for.

"Well, then it is my lucky day." He said, turning back to look at her. "And you can tell her they found the ship."

She looked at him expectantly, "Did you get her things off it?"

He smirked at her "I've been tied up in bed, and not in the good way."

She ignored him, "She needs her things."

He couldn't stop the scoff that escaped him, "Oh, I'll bet she does" and just like that he realized his opportunity, he knew exactly how he was going to keep himself out of their ire, better even, daresay they would be thankful for what he had done.

"Oh, that's good news then. A giant got loose from the hold." He was grinning now, large and proud, and he ignored the absolutely incredulous look on her face.

"You lost a giant?"

"Well, a shrunken giant." He rationalized,

"How is that good news?" she was exasperated and still wasn't catching onto it. He decided to explain it to her,

"Because when he got free, he took one look at the prince and became extremely murderous." And like that, like a match being struck she understood exactly what he was saying.

"Hmm. A giant in town who wants to kill the prince. This is just the distraction we need." He smiled, and he knew that he had her hook line and sinker,

"That it is, dear."

BREAK

Percy needed to think, so he went where he always went when he required deep contemplation, the sea. In this instance he was seated on the edge of the far pier, watching wave after wave lap into the wooden pillars of the dock, contemplating what he should do next. Logic told him that he needed to call this in, this was far bigger than anyone could have foreseen, too many variables involved, he needed to bring this to the department's attention as soon as possible. But at the same time, the story felt ridiculous, even to him. Sure the department knew that weird stuff happened out in the field, and had pretty much seen and heard everything imaginable but this was pretty far removed from even the most active imaginations.

Hence the dilemma, he was certain that what he had learned was correct, it all added up no matter how far fetched it seemed, however there was simply no way for him to effectively prove all of this to his superiors without being labeled institutional. Hence his current dilemma, he was a fairly adaptable man, something he had been commended for as far back as he could remember, but even then he had his limits. Thankfully, the decision on whether to call in and make a report was made for him.

He heard the running first, the familiar pitter-patter of foot on gravel, then he heard the voices, harried and stressed. Finally, he felt more than heard the new presence. The ground literally shook, like Storybrooke was experiencing a miniature earthquake, and Percy leapt to his feet and turned around. What he saw froze him in place. A giant. An honest to god's giant. He felt numb, then he started to shake, and his stomach felt suddenly uneasy, like he was motion sick. He couldn't move, couldn't breathe, he could only stand there in abject horror, as the being that had stalked his nightmares for years, was back in horrific detail right before his very eyes.

The creature couldn't see him, between the two was a large red fisherman's hut that obscured Percy from the creature's vision, but he could see it, and more importantly he could see the group of people standing underneath the mass. It was the King and Queen and their close liaison, likely Grumpy according to Biscuit they were talking, despite the creature being more than two stories tall his voice was too quiet for Percy to hear or understand, but he got the gist of it. He was pissed at the King for whatever reason. Percy watched as the man walked forward, out of the grasp of Snow White, seemingly surrendering himself to the monster. Percy watched as it roared in anger and charged, he should have done something, the old Percy would charged in with reckless abandon and done whatever he could to save the day.

But he wasn't that man anymore, hadn't been for a long time, and so he just sat there, frozen in fear, like a coward. He would berate himself for it later, unable to believe he had been so weak, but it wouldn't change anything. He watched in partial horror and interest as the being approached the King, but just the creature was about slam the King into paste; Snow White grabbed him out of the way. The creature fell, and then something strange happened. The creature fell even further, sunk straight into the ground and got stuck around the waist, completely trapped in the earth. Then a strange blue light began to filter up and around the creature and suddenly it disappeared, it didn't take Percy long to figure what had happened, not as the three still breathing mortals all ran toward the lip of the new crater and looked down.

By this point Percy had regained the ability to move, and he saw a number of townspeople rushing toward the commotion. Percy slinked away as quietly as he could, pulling out his phone as he did so, and dialing the number for the home office. This was out of his hands now.

BREAK

For them, it was just another happily ever after, nobody had gotten hurt, and the town and gained an invaluable ally in the process, plus they managed to get one over on both Hook and Cora all in one fell swoop. Snow and David were feeling pretty damn good about themselves as they made their way slowly away from Granny's small diner.

They were all smiles and laughs on their way up the stairs to Snow's loft, full of plans for the coming days, and stealing kisses and forbidden touches on the way up, each making plans to stay in bed a little longer the next morning, a good day meant a good night for them after all.

They entered the loft, Snow back first as she was currently too tongue-tied with her husband to walk in conventionally. They stumbled over the threshold, and she began tearing at David's coat and unbuttoning his shirt, she had just heard him slam the door closed behind when she heard it. The unmistakable _Ker-Chunk_ a weapon being cocked back and loaded for bear. The broke apart from one anther in a haze, David scrambling to reach down and collect the pistol from his shoulder holster that was half off of his body as a result of Snow's keen affections.

"Stop that" came a voice from the dark, David stopped his movement and slowly stooped back up, his hands rising slowly into the air and unconsciously stepping slightly forward and to the front of his Wife, the two were squinting into the dark but it was impossible to see anything, the moon was covered by clouds and the lights were all off in the apartment, they had no idea where their would-be assailant was hiding.

"You, Mary-Margaret" she turned to face the sound of the noise, her eyes narrowing even more in anger, anger that this man had dared to invade her home and that he had the audacity to threaten her and her husband, the voice continued ignoring her voiceless thoughts, "or I guess I should say Snow?" that was said with so much derision and incredulity that it threw Snow off balance, and she shared a look with David. "Turn the light on" She did as she was told and stumbled over in the dark to the light switch and flicked on the lights. She blinked a few times as her eyes attempted to adjust to the sudden blinding brightness, but when everything came into focus she audibly gasped. There, perched behind the bar top, silver handgun drawn and pointed directly at her, was the new man in town, Perry Johnson. He looked between the two of them, handgun still steadily pointing right at her heart,

"You got some 'splaining to do."

 _AN:_ Yo, so I'm not dead, just beyond busy and stressed but literally couldn't focus on anything else until I got all of this out of my system. Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, tell me what ya think and I apologize for the long time between chapters but you know how life get's and this is really just a hobby for my free time anyways. For my _Sentinel_ fans no worries that will be returning I promise, just likely not until halfway through December or so, I need to get through the rest of my semester in one piece before I get back on top of things but I promise it's coming. Anyhoo thanks again for all the love and support, ya'll are beyond spectacular and I love you dearly, Happy Thanksgiving or whatever you wanna celebrate on a random ass Thursday in November. Until next time,

-LilDB


	4. You Won't Like Me When I'm Godly

His hands never left the pistol, keeping the sights pinned squarely between the two in front of him, ready to snap to whomever moved first. Out of the corner of his eye he saw David's fingers twitch slightly towards the handle of the service piece on his waist. Percy rounded on him, making sure to keep one eye on the Snow, whom he felt sure was equally dangerous.

"With just your left hand" Percy commanded slowly, his voice shattering the eerie silence that had fallen over the apartment, "slowly remove your pistol, leaving it in the holster, and place it on the ground in front of you." David hesitated, and Percy saw his fingers twitch again. "That's not a game you want to playing right now man." Percy warned softly, "You play stupid games.." he thumbed the safety off of his pistol with an audible 'click' "you win stupid shit. Now do it. Slowly." After another long moment of tense silence, David complied.

He slowly and carefully, using only his left hand while keeping his right in the air, removed the pistol and holster and placed them softly on the ground. "Good." Now kick them toward me. Try anything, and there'll be two in your chest before you can say 'Charming'. Got it?" David and Snow's eyes widened considerably and they shared a look. Gulping, David nodded his acquiescence and kicked the pistol away from him and towards Percy before stepping back and standing next to his wife.

Percy nodded and stooped down, keeping both his eyes and pistol level, and snagged the discarded weapon before placing it on the counter beside him with the barrel facing away from him. Could never be too careful when magic was involved. With the weapon safely deposited, he clicked the safety back onto his own weapon and stowed it neatly in his concealed holster in the front of his pants.

"Now then" he said, "I think we need to talk, or rather," he said seeing them about to interrupt him, "I'm going to talk, explain some things to you two and ask you some questions. You two, are going to answer those questions or-"

"Or what?" demanded the woman now identified as Snow, "kill us?" Percy raised an eyebrow at that,

"I was thinking more along the lines of arresting you actually. Now please, be quiet." He tapped his finger against the waistband of his pants for emphasis. He didn't like resorting to threats against what he had decided were a decidedly good natured couple, but things were quickly spiraling out of hand and he needed answers quickly.

"As I was saying, I believe that it only fair that since I know who or rather what, you may or may not be, I should introduce myself as well." Miraculously the two stayed silent and allowed him to continue. Percy reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a leather wallet. He flipped it open to reveal a large badge with his identification and the letters 'DSI' in big bold print. "My name is special agent Percy Jackson. I work for the Department of Special Investigations. You've never heard of it so don't bother asking." He said when their questioning looks threatened to cut him off. "We're a private division of the FBI dedicated to investigations of potentially supernatural, paranormal, magical, and just all around out of the ordinary occurrences."

Nearly thirty years our organization was made aware of a large magical discharge at this location. The discharge lasted for only a few second before it disappeared. When our team of investigators arrived on scene they discovered that for whatever reason they could not enter the town, there was a large magical barrier barring their entry. However before a proper investigation of the barrier could begin, circumstances changed and the department needed to deploy its resources elsewhere. Since then we have been monitoring the situation and allowing it to monitor itself since it was seemingly contained. Until several months ago when another massive surge of raw magical power erupted from this location. There were at least two other outbursts since then, and I was charged with coming here to investigate whatever the hell was going on."

He paused for a breath and to collect his thoughts. He was happy to see that he had seemingly stunned the couple into submission with his speech thus far. Deciding to maintain his momentum, he continued.

"I discovered many very interesting things over the course of my very brief investigation. I gotta say that ya'll are like the most unsubtle group of people I've ever met. I literally only had to sit outside that bar on Main and listen to the fat angry one rant to learn just about everything I needed to know." He lied about that one, but he was proud that it was rather believable. It was a hell of lot more convincing than trying to say that he and actually learned what he needed from some prepubescent fish and horse.

Snow groaned and covered her face in her hands muttering, "Goddammit Leroy" while David just rubbed the bridge of his nose in agitation. Percy did his best to not let his pride in his own ability to bullshit show on his face. It had taken a long time but he finally felt he was talented enough to make even his cousins slightly less disappointed in him.

He cleared his throat to bring there attention back to him, "I, ah, really didn't even need to do that though." He looked Snow dead in the eyes, "I was at the docks this morning." Percy felt his face morph into his most menacing scowl. Like his lying, he had needed to practice hard in the mirror to get his scowl down well enough. He had been told that he was simply too happy of an individual to scowl or even look properly angry. But, like his ability to fib, he had practiced and it was paying off, the pair froze instantly. David shut his and was muttering to himself.

When Percy spoke again, his voice was much more coarse, like he had accidently gargled tar, "How, in the hell, did you get a giant here. And moreover, how the in the hell could you have let it loose!" the last bit came out as yell more than anything which seemed to jolt Snow out of her daze.

"It's name is Tiny!" said Snow angrily, glaring at him, "and HE was not responsible for what happened. For that matter neither were!"

"At least not directly." Said David quietly, looking immensely guilty.

"Please explain" Percy commanded lightly.

"You wouldn't believe us…" replied David.

"Look, in the last week or so that I've been here, I've seen the worst Captain Hook cosplay of my life, talked to fish, met a horse named Sea Biscuit who claimed to be from another dimension, and watched a man turn from a giant to a human. Whatever you have to say can not be any stranger than that, I promise you."

"Sea Biscuit can talk?"

"Talked to fish?"

Had the situation been any different, seeing the dual look of incredulity on both of their faces would have been funny. But right now all Percy wanted were some answers.

"You really think that you're the only dimension hopper around here?" Whatever they had been expecting him to say, that certainly wasn't it.

I'll tell you what. I'll tell you what I know, and then please for the love of god, tell me that I'm wrong and clear the air. Honestly, everything that I've heard in the last few days has been so absurd that I have a difficult time believing any of it. Given what I've seen and done in my life, believe me that, that is an accomplishment."

David and snow looked at one another again. After a moment of silence, during which the two seemed to have a silent conversation, Snow sighed, her shoulders sagging before she nodded.

Percy proceeded to repeat the far fetched story that he had heard from the horse and the fish that he had met. Everything from the spell, to the Enchanted Forest, to the 28 twenty-eight years that the town had been there. When he finished talking, Snow looked like she was on the verge of a breakdown and David had the air of an absolutely defeated man.

There reactions alone were enough to cause Percy's stomach to drop. Percy knew that he wasn't the most traditionally smart individual on the planet, but he knew how to read people. It was one of the few things he could genuinely pride himself on. Which was why when he saw the couple in front of looking like their world had simply ended, he knew that not only was their reaction genuine, but that what he had been told was the truth.

"Dear gods above, please tell me that I'm wrong here." He said, somewhat desperate. It might have been strange, given the job he had, to feel this way. However in all of his years battling monsters, demons, and all manner of creatures of the occult, he never dreamed that the Disney stories he had watched as a kid would have any actual merit to them. The idea seemed like utter lunacy, the ravings of a horse and some fish that had simply spent too much time alone for their own good. But, even as the thought struck him, he realized the sheer lunacy of those actions in and of themselves. He was the son of a god long thought to be dead, and considered by almost all of contemporary society to not have existed at all in the first place. Furthermore, the more he considered it, his own life seemed more similar to that of a fictional book or television show. He squashed his own internal dilemma as David spoke, softly at first.

"It's true." He nearly whispered, "all of it. Twenty-eight years ago the Evil Queen cast a spell that delivered all of us from our homes in the enchanted forest to here. She said it was our punishment for everything that had been done to her."

"No", said Snow, who now had tears forming in the corners of her eyes, "It was my punishment, I stole her happy handing from her and so she decided to steal mine to get back at me." She broke down sobbing and collapsed on the floor, her head in her hands. Her shoulders shuddering with every sob. David immediately dropped to her side and wrapped her in a hug, a desperate attempt to try and comfort her. Her words were so muffled behind her hands and her sobs that Percy almost missed them.

"I missed on twenty-years of my daughters life and it was all my fault."

"Daughter?" Percy questioned, thrown off by the statement. Sea Biscuit had never mentioned a daughter during their discussion. Granted there could only have been so much that a horse knew but still. In fact, now that he was considering it, he was shocked the horse knew anything at all, in fact-he shook himself. Damn ADHD, David responded to his question without looking at him, still focused on his sobbing wife.

"You've met her." He said softly, "The town Sheriff, Emma, she's our daughter."

Well, that certainly explained the protectiveness Percy had noticed during his night in the interrogation room. He had initially mistaken the protectiveness of David as that of a man with his significant other. When in reality, it had really been a father who had only recently been reunited with his daughter. But he still had questions.

"If she's your daughter, how the hell are all of you around the same age? Shouldn't she have come along with you? If you've been in…", he searched for a term, "stasis", he decided on "for twenty-eight years, why isn't she a baby. For that matter how does she have a kid? And how did this spell even get broken in the first place?"

The more he talked, the more he realized how little any of it actually made any sense. By this point, Snow had calmed down slightly. Her shoulder were still shaking and tears were still staining her cheeks but she was able to respond.

"Before the spell hit, we had special compartment built so that she could be smuggled out. The tree was magic and protected her from the spell. When the rest of us were transported away she came to but unlike us, she wasn't trapped." She went on to tell him what little she knew and was willing to share of Emma's life prior to coming to Storybrooke. Obviously she withheld some details, those she knew and those she had merely guessed at. But she gave him the general timeline about how and why she ended coming to Storybrooke. When she finished Percy groaned loudly and slouched onto the counter, his heads in his hands. Snow and David couldn't hear all of his muttering but they caught words like,

"…Gods dammed fate…" and "…why in the hells is it always me…",

After taking a moment to collect himself, he shook off the stupor.

"Ok", he said, rubbing a hand over his tired face, "Ok, so this Evil Queen, I'll take a random shot in the dark here and say that it's your mayor?" They both nodded, slightly wide eyed,

"Yeah", said Snow cautiously, "How did you know?",

"She radiates magical energy", He said simply. When their expressions remained befuddled he explained, "People who use magic consistently, especially those who have a tendency to throw around powerful or dark magic, always have a trace on them. Kind of like a scent if you know what to look for. When her highness interrogated me the other day, I could feel that something was off with her.",

"How the hell can feel her magic?", David asked, incredulous, "I thought you weren't from our realm?", Then realization dawned on his face, "Wait, hold on a minute, you said you weren't native to this realm either! Just who the hell are you!", he was standing now and posturing as though he was going to make a run at Percy. Before Snow could stop him however, Percy acted. Faster than either of them could register Percy had reached down to his waistband and pulled his pistol from its holster. In one fluid motion, he had it loaded, cocked, and leveled at David's chest.

"Don't.", he said simply. David faltered, and raised his hands in the air. Snow took the opportunity to place herself in front of the pair, her hands on David's chest.

"Please", she pleaded, looking back at Percy, her eyes wide, "Let's be civil. David I'm sure Percy was going to explain if you just gave him a chance.", she glared back at Percy, as though daring him to counter her. He ignored her for a moment before lowering his gun. Instead of placing it back in his holster however, he placed at the countertop beside him, in plain view of the pair. It wasn't a subtle message, but he was no longer in the mood for subtly. He wanted it plain as day, 'don't do that again, or next time I won't be so cordial'. Percy nodded his head before saying,

"Just give me a minute and I'll do my best to explain to you what I can. I can't tell you everything, a lot of my life is classified. But I'll tell you what I can given the…unique circumstances.",

He paused, taking a minute to collect his thoughts and organize what he was going to say.

"To answer your first question. I can feel her magic her because despite what she claimed, Regina sure as hell didn't bring to a land without magic."

At the shell-shocked looks on their faces, he continued.

"Given my own limited understanding of magic, let alone the magic of your, what did you call it? Your realm? Anyway, given what I know I've hypothesized some stuff. Magic is an incredibly fickle creature, that seems to be universal. Magi can manipulate and mold magic, but they cannot fully control it. Magic is an entity in and of itself and will do as it sees fit. Additionally, it appears that no two worlds have similar forms of magic. The magic here, is much more subtle."

"Sure, I've seen spells that can create balls of fire, or throw around massive thunderbolts but those are few and far between. Additionally almost all magic here has to be cast through a medium of some sort. Like a wand or a blasting rod or even a staff. This contrasts to what I have been able to understand about the magic of your realm. From what I can tell, the magic of your home is mush more potent, stronger. Your magi can cast without mediums for instance. So what I assume happened when your little queenie cast her spell, was that the spell worked. You guys were sent to a land without magic, as you guys understand magic.", He paused to take a breath. "I'm guessing she's been having some, uh, performance issues with her magic?" he snickered. He was still somewhat a five-year old. He was content with that.

"Yes!", said Snow, "She's been having trouble doing much of anything. Nearly got her killed when the spell broke.", Percy nodded in understanding.

"I'm not surprised. She has to adapt to the way things are done here."

"Enough! Tell us who you are! Where the hell are you from, how did you even find this place, what is the DSI and what's going to happen to us!", David was working himself up again but Snow smacked him hard on the arm and he cooled off slightly. Percy raised an eyebrow but nodded all the same.

"I believe I do owe you guys a bit of an explanation I guess. I'm nothing if not a man of my word. I'll start with who I represent I suppose.", He folded his arms across his chest and leaned forward so that he was leaning on the counter. "Like I said, there's magic here, and as such there are magical and supernatural communities. I won't bore you down with the details but over a long time members of the supernatural community came together and formed literal communities, those became towns and regions which in turn developed governments and institutions all over the globe."

"There's a pretty substantial supernatural community here in the United States. In fact, behind China and India, the US has the third largest collection of supernatural beings on the entire planet. With such a large population, there needed to be an organization dedicated to monitoring and policing this community. The organization I belong to is called the Department of Supernatural Investigations. Think of it as something similar to a magical FBI. We handle to complicated stuff that really threatens the exposure of the supernatural to non-magical world."

"That's actually how we found out about you. Back in the eighties there was an absolutely enormous surge of magical energy that emanated from this region. Our department was dispatched in force to help try and deal with the outburst but when our agents arrived on sight, they couldn't get through the town line. We settled for monitoring the situation from afar, the egg heads thought that trying to force our way through the barrier would have caused significant backlash and destruction."

"This region has been under constant surveillance for the last twenty-eight years. Two months, there was another massive surge of energy that erupted from this location. The advance recon units determined that no damage was done and I was dispatched to investigate. One thing lead to another, and here we are." He paused to take a breath and let everything sink in.

"As for you guys, I honestly have no idea what's going to happen. You're not a threat, and as far as I can tell, neither is your mayor. She seems pretty content to just rule over your little plot of Americana. I will have to report this back up the ladder but honestly, with how self contained your community seems, I don't think you should be too worried. We have…bigger issues right now than dealing with some weird little town in Maine."

He had attempted to make his words sound as genuine as he could, and it seemed to have had the desired effect. Both David and Snow seemed to release a simultaneously held breath. Percy had been telling the truth as far as he could figure as well. With the sheer number of miniature magical and supernatural communities across the country, the federal government was willing to grant the majority their own autonomy. The feds were too tied up in dealing with the on-goings in their own backyards to have to worry about the backwoods of Maine. That being said, Percy also wouldn't be too surprised if he was tasked with staying here longer term as a surveillance operation. Despite blowing his cover, which he was certainly going to be chewed out for but he didn't care. He'd been chewed out before, he could handle it.

He also had a personal interest in staying here longer as well. He had never really considered, or wanted for that matter, to leave his home. He had been here for nearly ten years and liked it here. He had built something of a life here, which certainly could not have been said for his life before. But that didn't dismiss the small part of him that wondered, maybe even hoped that he could someday return to where he was from. Hell, if nothing else, he had a gut feeling that being here would be an adventure, and if there was one thing that he loved more than anything, it was an adventure.

"I have…a lot of questions and I don't even know where to begin", Snow. Percy couldn't really blame either of them. He had just dropped a pretty severe bomb on the pair but he had neither the time nor the patience to waste any more time on this.

"I'll be happy to talk to you about it later but I have to report in soon."

"Not so fast.", said David, glaring at him, "What. Are. You."

Percy sighed, rubbing a hand through his hair. He thought he could have gotten out of this without saying anything, he had kind of been hoping that they would have been too shocked to say anything else. He probably could have just forced his way out but he didn't want to make enemies here already. Not when he had a strong feeling that he would be working here longer.

"What do you know about Greek Mythology?", They both looked confused by that. Percy was beginning to think before to much longer, confusion would simply be their natural state of being.

"Not, much I guess…" said Snow slowly, "Just the basics, Zeus is the king, his brothers are Poseidon king of the sea and Hades king of the underworld or something like that, right?",

Percy nodded, "It's a bit more complicated than that but yes that's the gist. Well the easiest way to say this is that I'm a descendent of the gods, Poseidon to be precise.",

He felt that simply coming out and saying that he was half-god would have been revealing too much, too quickly. He felt that these were trustworthy people, but even then, he had not known them long and wasn't going to trust them with such potentially dangerous information.

"So, what.", Started David, "you're like Hercules or something?",

Percy snarled viscously and slammed his hand on the countertop. There was a loud bang and as the surface of the counter cracked under his fist. Both Snow and David looked startled by the display of sudden hostility, as well as the sheer strength on display.

"I, am NOTHING like that monster.", he growled out, glaring at David. He took a few calming breaths and relaxed. He looked down and his expression turned rather sheepish as he saw the damage he had caused.

"I'll uh, I'll pay for that. Um, sorry and uh…yeah", he said lamely, the Snow just shook her head, her eyes so wide they were threatening to bulge out of their sockets. "I'm sorry", Percy said, rubbing his neck awkwardly, "Heracles is something of a sore subject for me. He gives those of us with godly ancestry a bad name and no I don't really feel like explaining right now. Just know that the real Heracles, or well I guess my Heracles is nothing like the Disney version.", The pair just nodded and Snow motioned for him to continue.

"Anyways", he began uncomfortably, his eyes shifting back to the crack in the counter, " because of my ancestry I can communicate with fish-"

"Like Aquaman?!", interjected David quickly, looking at Percy excitedly for the first time since he had met the man. Both Percy and Snow looked at him exasperatedly and he had the good nature to look somewhat sheepish about his outburst. Percy decided to humor him though,

"If by that you mean like the badass Justice League cartoon version then yes, I am like Aquaman. If you're referring to the abomination that is the '60's interpretation. Then I'll have kick your ass." Under his breathe he muttered, "freaking Apollo, the bastard. Anyway, because Poseidon also created the horse I can communicate with them as well. I also have enhanced strength", he again looked uncomfortably at the counter, "and can control water to a degree.",

"But how did you end up here?", asked Snow,

"To make a long story very short, I was investigating some disturbances in the Bermuda triangle when I…fell into a portal." That was quite possibly the most generic and simple way of putting it but that was all he was willing to share at the moment. "When I woke up, I was here, well not here I was really somewhere in the middle of a potato farm in Iowa but regardless. My presence was quickly discovered by the DSI and before I knew it I was in their training program. I've been working for them ever since."

They looked incredibly nonplussed by his explanation, quite frankly he didn't care. Honestly he shouldn't have even shared that much with them but at the moment he just couldn't bring himself to care. He suddenly felt exhausted as the impact of all that had happened hit at once. He needed to go report in, and that was likely to be…the opposite of fun. Hell, really, it was going to be utter hell.

"Look", he said getting their attention, "I really do have to report this in now, but for whatever reason, I want to help you guys. Can't say what it is, I just have a gut feeling that your good people.", The pair actually smiled at that, "So I'll go to bat for you, but please, do me a favor and keep the giant shit under control, if more of that happens I can't promise what's going to happen. I'll be back soon. Don't tell anyone what I told you today, for right now all of this stays between us, next time you see me, I'm Perry Johnson, marine biologist. Got it?" They didn't look happy about it but they must have realized the situation they were in because they nodded all the same.

With a final nod Percy turned and left. He wasn't positive about what the future had in store, but he did know that his life was about to get very interesting. Again.

He smiled.

 _AN:_ Yo! This story ain't dead yet! Haha sorry about the infrequent update schedule but life, work, and college tend to come first. On the bright side I'm done with classes for the semester so hopefully things get done at a more consistent pace. Haha anyway hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, the tedious backstory chapter that nobody really enjoys but is necessary to move the plot along. Thanks for putting up with it and I hope you guys are enjoying my take on Percy and the greater world being created here. Let me know what you think and thanks again for all of the support! Next update will be for The Real Half-Blood Prince so if you're waiting on that, don't worry it's coming and I'm very excited about where that's gonna go, same with all of my stories honestly. Thanks again for the love and support and I'll see you lovelies soon!

-LilDB


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